Guidelines required for pet Parents, Any Dog Can Become Ferocious Says Karnataka High Court

Karnataka: After observing the fact that “any dog can become ferocious”, the Karnataka High Court told the central government that a guideline for “responsible pet ownership” must be issued through rules framed according to the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act. 

“It is not only those dogs which are branded ferocious that can indulge in inflicting harm upon human beings or animals in the surrounding. Any dog can become ferocious. A dog bite is a dog bite, be it from a branded ferocious dog or any other dog. An appropriately constituted committee should delve upon the concept of responsible pet ownership to be protected, and irresponsible pet ownership to be penalised,” the court observed.

Justice M. Nagaprasanna made the suggestions and remarks in his recent order, which revoked the central government’s circular imposing a ban on 23 dog breeds deemed to be “ferocious” and “dangerous”. “It is not that a Pitbull or American bulldog or any other pet dog is a dog that is roaming in the streets. It is a dog owned by pet owners. Pet owners would become solely responsible for the act of their dogs, if they are ferocious or dangerous, as pet owners have kept them despite their characteristic being projected... they should act responsibly,” the court observed.

According to the court, responsible pet ownership must emerge as a sine qua non to pet ownership (without which, not), meaning pet ownership and responsible pet ownership must go hand in hand. The court reasoned that dogs are more likely to become aggressive when they are unnurtured, unsupervised, and not socialized correctly to be around other animals and people in society. The court also noted that this thought process of imposing a blanket ban would not lead to a solution to this issue, as it is the dog owner’s responsibility to ensure their pet will not harm any member of the public anywhere. 

According to the Karnataka High Court, these are the factors, parameters, and processes that will have to be deliberated upon by the central government before introducing laws to ban certain animal breeds. The court also pointed out that dog breed bans are not an alien practice, as they are imposed in nearly every country in the world. However, the court noted that these bands of breeds were passed through legislation in countries such as the USA, Canada, Austria, Ireland, Denmark, France, Germany, Norway, Spain, Singapore, Australia, and New Zealand.